Despite earlier reports that the UK might get the Exynos 5 octa-core based Samsung Galaxy S4, it appears that it simply will not be the case as Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 based one is all that the UK customers will see.

According to earlier information, the UK was one of the countries that was destined to get the Exynos 5 octa-core based Samsung Galaxy S4. It was announced during the launch event in New York and again confirmed by a press release from Samsung as well.

According to current information and an official statement from Samsung given to Pocket-lint.com, it the UK, the Galaxy S4 will be available as a 4G device with a 1.9GHz clocked quad-core processor, or in other words with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 chipset.

We are yet to see some benchmarks of the Galaxy S4 based on the Exynos 5 chip and a Qualcomm-based version could hardly be described as slow. Early information suggests that the Exynos 5 based verion might not bring any impressive performance gains but should provide better battery life thanks to its set of four Cortex A7 cores.

Until Samsung actually announces a full list of countries that are getting either the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 or the Exynos 5-based Galaxy S4, we can just follow these official statements and rumors from regional representatives from Samsung.

Samsung’s new eight-core Exynos 5 SoC will not feature Mali graphics as initially rumoured. It appears that the Korean giant decided to tap Imagination Technologies instead.

The big.LITTLE SOC has PowerVR SGX 544MP3 graphics on board, clocked at 533MHz and capable of delivering 51.1 GFLOPS. The 544MP3 sits between SGX 543MP4 and SGX 554MP4 parts, used in Apple’s A5X and A6X chips respectively. So although Samsung’s new chip will feature eight cores, in terms of graphics performance it will probably be well behind Apple’s A6X.

The A6X is the chip to beat in terms of GPU performance and we’re not sure the next generation of SoCs from Samsung, Qualcomm and Nvidia will have what it takes. Apple can afford to invest a bit more in graphics performance than other chipmakers, so its tablet-centric X-series parts will continue to utilize somewhat pricier and bigger GPUs than the competition.

Google has launched its newest version of its Samsung built, Chrome OS-based Chromebook.

Built around an 11.6-inch screen, the new Chromebook is based on Samsung's Exynos 5 dual-core SoC, 2GB of memory and 16GB of flash storage. The new Chromebook weighs around 1.13kg (2.5 pounds) and is only 2cm (0.8 inch) thick at its thickest point, which easily puts it in the ultrathin category.

As noted, the new Chromebook is based on Samsung's Exynos 5 Dual 5250 SoC, it's completely silent and does not have any moving parts, no cooling fans or mechanical drive. The rest of the specs include 2GB of RAM memory, 16GB of flash storage backed by 100GB of Google Drive storage free of charge for two years, 802.11abgn 2x2 WiFi and Bluetooth 3.0 for connectivity, USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports, HDMI output, 1.5W stereo speakers, SD card slot, and, what Google calls, full-sized Chrome keyboard.

The 11.6-inch screen has 1366x768 resolution and 200 nits of brightness, according to Google. The battery will be enough for over 6.5 hours, it boots under 10 seconds and resumes instantly. According to Google, the new Chromebook and its Samsung Exynos 5 can cope up with 1080p videos.

As of today, the new Google/Samsung Chromebook will be available for pre-order from Amazon, Best Buy, PC World and other retailers and available from these retailers as well as Google Play store as of next week. The price is set at an impressive US $249 or £229 if you are in the UK.